Engine-starter



V. BENDIX.

ENGINE STARTER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 31| 19H).

1,327,550@ Patented; Jim. 6,1920.

'776-5265665 [finora/or VINCT BENDIX, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

ENGINE-STARTER.

menace.

Specification of Letters atent.

Application filed March 321, 1919. Serial No. 28i5,387.

To all whom 'it may concern.'

Be it knownthat I, ViNCnN'r BnNolX, a citizen otvthe United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Engine-Starters, of which th'e followingis a specification.

My invention relates to a starter for an engine suoli as an internal combustion engine and the object thereof is to produce an automatic drive or transmission therefor of novel and eliicient construction and mode of operation. y 'f' My new construction of drive belongs to that general type exemplified by patents heretofore issued tome suoli as' Patent No.

'1,125,935 dated January 26, 191.3, and No.

1,274,370 `*dated August G, 1918, according to which a driving member, whether the pinioiii itself-Which engages the *engine inember sueltas thegly wheel or separateiinember which controls such pinion, is mounted on 'a rotatable shaft suoli as a screw shaft and automatically causesv engagement of the;

drive with and its disengagement from the engine member after the engine has started on its own power.

One. of the main @bjc-iets of my invention is to provide a novel and efcient construction of drive according to which the rota tablemember or screw shaft is relieved of the driving load and such load placed entirely upon a separate shaft which is the driven shaft and which may be directly orA indirectly driven by tihe starting motor or other sourc'e of power. The driving membei' may be rather closely fitted upon the screw shaft and is adapted to be operatively connected therewith upon full mesh thereof with the engine member. My invention relates more particularly to the construction of this driving member according to which the same is made in three parts, one being' the driven member proper or pinion mounted upon another part or sleeve and having a yielding longitudinal movement thereon. This second part or sleeve is mounted upon an inner sleeve which is itself mounted upon the driving shaft and connected by yield-v ing driving connection with the second mentioned sleeve. According to this construction the driving member is yieldingly driven and also permitted a yielding longitudinal movement in case of abutment of the pinion teeth and fly wheel teeth end to end.

In the 'drawing Figure 1 is a sectionalfele" vation of a starter embodying n'iyinvention nd Fig. 2A a section on the -line 2 2 of Pig. 1. i

Referring to the particular embodiment of my invention which is herein shown and which is selected for the purpose of a clear and definite description, it will be understood that my invention. may be embodied in different forms and moreover while the drive is shown as direct-driven by a starting motor, the same may be indirect-driven viatemiea aan. c, ieee.

or the same may be driven by any suitable;

source of power. i I

As shown, the driving shaft 1 is here the extended armature shaft of a starting motor indicated at A and the drive is therefore in this instance direct-driven. Upon the inner end of this shaft there is secured in suitable manner, as b a key 2 ya' gear 3 so as to rotate therewit Also it -will be understood that my .invention while herein shown 'as that of the inboard type also applicable to the outboard type. This driving shaft is smooth and on it is mount-ed. the driving member which is of the following novel construction:

As shown, an extended to slide longitudinally on the shaft land on this sleeve there is mounted an outer sleeve 5 which is yieldingly drivingly connected to sleeve et is mounted the inner sleeve as by gneans of the coiled I drive spring 6 one end of which isi-'oonnected to the outer end of the sleeve a by the stud 7 and the other end of which is connected to the outer end of the outer sleeve 5 by the stud 8. If desired a clear-` ance space 9 may be provided between the outer end of the sleeve 5 and the shoulder` 10 of the sleeve i so ,that the formers'leeve l may have a longitudinal yielding movement with respect to the latter sleeve. However, this is not necessary because the relative longitudinal movement of these parts is in ther-'opposite direction, that is extends the drive spring.

'ico

Upon the inner end portion of the sleevev 'i 5 there is mounted the-driving member proper which is here in the form ofa, pinion 11. This pinion is connected with the sleeve 5 by the key 12, with the result that such pinion will rotate in unison'with its sleeve and be movable longitudinally thereon against the tension of the coiled spring -13 bearing constantly against it. The pinion is limited in its longitudinal movement en forced by this Spring by means of the stop is formed -by a gear `ring` 15 titted between the flange 16 on the sleeve and'the annulus 1T, said parts being secured together' by the screws 18.

The for 'ard or lett hand end ot' the sleeve l is provided with inclined clutch jaws 1S) f adapted to engage complementary clutch jawS 2O .formed on the outer end -ot the hub 3"' ot the gear 3.

Referring to the automatic shitting means 'for the driving member, the same is mounted entirely independently ot the iflriving Shaft and its: aeeociated parts described, the .sa-me being mounted on an axis 'parallel to the driving' Ishat't axis. As Shown, this shifting means consists ot.' a rotatable shaft operatively connected with the driving', shatt and a control member or zgear cooperating with the driving member. This shaft 21, which is a countershaft with respect to the shat't l, .suitably mounted, the same in the present instance being' mounted at its ends in bearings 22 and 23 in a easing or bracket -l. To the inner end ojt this shaft is Secured al gear which in constant inesh with the gear 3 whereby the cimntershaiit is .rotated whenever tl'iedriving' Shattis rotated. The eountershatt is provided at its intermediate portion with .screw threads 2li on which iss threaded the control member, which is herein the form ot a gear 2T engaged by the xishroud .Qear 15 and in such manner as to rotate in unison therewith and also shift the gear 15 and the driving' member longitudi nally on the driving shaft.

Describing a cycle ot operationand starting with the parts in their normal position shown in thc drawing, when the motor is operated and the driving shaft thereby rotated, the countcrslnitt will he similarly rotated, with the result that the 4fiar QT will be aiitomatically advanced longitudinally to the lett. ,cariving with it thc driving' memher and sliding' it along' tlu` driving` shalt. This causes a meshing' ot' the pinion ll with tfhe teeth '28 o l'l thc l'ly wheel 2S. llhen lthis pinion is in tull mesh therewith the clutch iawslfl and 2l) will engage and the pinion will'bc driven hv the driving rshalfl through said clutch. sleeve l. drive spring l and sicevc whereby the lly whccl will be rolatcd and the engine started. lllhon the 'cngine had slarlcd on ils own power thc cX- cess .siicc'l ol' rotation thcrcol' will cause the gear 27 to he moved lmehwardlj. to its noimal position aloner the screw-thrcadcd por tion ol the countershaft, reti-acting with it ylongitiidinally tor the ciated parte composing the driving' member, y

and no driving' load is carried by the eoun.- l

tersliat't.

In the event that the pinion teeth and the fly wheel teeth should not register but such teeth Should abut end to end.; the 'lorce et' the impact is taken h v the coinparatively light pinion w iich will be thus momentarily stepped in its longitudinal movementj while the sleeve 5 will fontinfie. to advance longitudinally, .said relative movon'ient ot these parts beine' permitted by the described mounting' et the pinion and being resisted by the spring 13. This etopping' olii the pinion will cause the rear 2T to rotate slightly thereby rotating the sleeve 5 and the pinion, sufficient to bring' such pinion into proper registei with the fiy wheel teeth.

lit'desired means may be employed tor holding' the gear 27 in the retracted or disengaged position while its shalt may still be rotating'. These means comprise a pin or rod 2f) mounted to slide transversely through the Shaft 21 and yieldingly-held in normal position by the coiled spring' 30. This pin has two lateral parallel arme' 11. 3i in which is mounted to slide a spi"inp;preescd latch llien the sha't't 2l is rotatingF the latch end ot' this device, which the heavier end, will move outwardly by centrifugal torce and will thereby present the latch to the flange 39, ot a ,shell 3S which is secured 1o the hub 27 oi the screw sha't't.` After tho countershatt hanI come to rest the catch dcvice will assume its norn'ial position shown and leave the `near 27 free to be advmiccd next starting;r operaH tion.

claimz' l. ln an engine starter, a drive ,compris ine' a drivingvshat'h driving means' mounted thereon tor longitudinal movement tlnireot` to engage a, member of the engine to be started and for rotary1 movement therewith tor rotating such engine mei'nber. vand shite ing' means mounted extraneous ot' such .sha l'll and cooperating with the driving mcanfs to control the engaging and dieenn'ae'inn' movcmonts thcrcot` Said driving' means including au independently longitudinally movabh` driving member which engages euch engine member.

i. in an engine starter. a drive compris# ini;- :i driving' shaftv` driviig' means mounted thereon tor longitudinal movinnenl thcreolE lo engage a member olthe engine to be started and for rolarv movcnuint therewith l'or rotating such engine member. and shillinn' means mounted exi' raucous of om h sha lit and coopcralinln with the drivlnniucans lo y Shining second sleeve having a shroud gear and said means having a shiftable gear engaging such shroud gear.

10. In an engine starter, a drive comprising a driving shaft, driving means mounte thereon foi-,longitudinal movement thereof to .engage a member of the engine to beV started and for rotary movementV therewith for rotating such engine/member, shitting means mounted extraneous of snoh'shatt and ooperating with the driving meansl'to oontrol the engaging ,and disengaging move' ments thereof, auch driving means ineluding a sleeve slidable on the 'haft and adapt,- ed to be drivenly connected therewith upon its advance longitudinal movement, aseoond sleeve mounted on the first sleeve`\and @operatively connected therewith, and an independently longitudinally movable driving` member w A ich is mounted on the second sleeve and engages the engine member, said second sleeve carrying such driving member at oneend and being connected at its other end to the first sleeve, and being geared f thereon Jfor or .1.

' ments thereof,

Meerane at anintermediate portion to said shifting means.

11. ln an engine starter, a drive. comprisv ing a drivin shaft, driving means mounte 'tudinal movement thereof mber of the engine rotary movement therewith engine member, and shirt-1' to engage a n' started and for for rotating such ing inea-ns mounted extraneous and cooperating with thev driving means to control the engaging and disengaging movesuoh driving means ineludin a sleeve slidable on the shaft and adapted to be drivenlv connected therewith upon its advance longitudinal movement, a secon( sleeve mounted on the first sleeve and operativ/ely connected therewith, -a coiled spring forming such operative conneetion, and an independent longitudinally movable to 'be 30 of such shaft -v driving member which is mounted on the' second sleeve and -engages the engine member.

vnonnr BnNDiX. 

